415: Chip Romero - A Chip Off Of Doug Henning

Cruise ship magician and noted Doug Henning historian and collector, Chip Romero joins us this week to talk about the life of Doug Henning and his collection. Along the way, Chip tells us some stories about Henning, busts some myths and goes deep behind the man and magician who was one of the Titans in our magic business.

Doug Henning's World of Magic (1977) starring Glen Campbell & Sandy Duncan. This recording is from ITV, as broadcast on 26th May 1986. From The MagicWeek Vid...

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354: Robin Leach - Lifestyles of Magicians

Robin Leach has long been associated with his catch phrase "Champagne Dreams and Caviar Wishes" as he hosted the long running television show, "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" which focused on profiling well-known celebrities and their lavish homes, cars and other materialistic details. But Robin is also a "magic fan" who clearly loves and has a deep respect for magic and he is friends with many of the local magicians. Believe it or not, he is an honorary member of The Magic Circle. He also has a rather impressive collection of magic books in his library.

I saw Robin Leach at last year's MAGIC Live! who was trying to be inconspicuous as he chatted with Stan Allen. I later asked Stan about Robin's association with magic which led to this podcast. As a long time resident of Las Vegas and immersed in the lifestyles of local celebrities, Robin has a unique perspective on the history and evolution of the magic scene. I felt that he would make a perfect guest for the podcast to hear an "outsiders" perspective of magic, magicians, and the role they have played in making Las Vegas what it is today. I was not disappointed.

Today at age 75 his life hasn't slowed down. I was lucky to get an hour and a half of his time during the week I was in Las Vegas because of his tremendously busy schedule including his weekly vlog (video log) on You Tube, LuxeVegas.

Our discussion opens with Robin talking about making and enjoying a "proper" cup of tea. He then talks about his passion for magic and how he believes it needs to have a much higher ranking among the performing arts. He then chats about having been a guest of Bob Harbin and becoming an honorary member of The Magic Circle. He then goes on to talk about his favorite magician, Bill Malone. He also enjoyed watching Ricky Jay live in his Broadway performance, "Ricky Jay and His 52 Assistants".

He then talks about the evolution of magic on the Las Vegas "Strip" including from Norm Neilsen, Channing Pollock, Siegfried and Roy, Lance Burton, David Copperfield to Penn & Teller, Criss Angel and Amazing Jonathan to the newest show on the Strip, Jarrett & Raja. Although he sings the praises of many magicians, he is not a fan of hypnotists, and he also has advice for Mac King and Xavier Mortimer. Ultimately, he believes there are too many magicians in Las Vegas today though the art of magic still survives. He then shifts to talking about how hard it is to work in New York City but Monday Night Magic has proved to be the exception.

He concludes by giving us his three "D's" of show business: Dedication, Discipline and Diligence.

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For more information on this and the other Nick Trost books in this series, please visit Steve Bryant's Little Egypt Magic, March 2017 edition.

310: 2016 Abbott's Get Together - Day Four

DAY FOUR - SATURDAY, AUGUST 6TH 2016
9:00AM REGISTRATION OPENS at the Abbott Plant
9:00AM MAGIC MINISTERS SESSION (more info) at the Methodist Church
9:00AM COLON ARTS & CRAFT FAIR (more info) until 4:00PM
9:30AM LECTURE - Joaquin Ayala at the High School
10:00AM ABBOTT'S DEALERS ROOM OPENS (more info) at Grade School
11:00AM COLON STREET PERFORMERS - at Craft Fair featuring Jania Taylor
11:30AM MAGIC SHOW at Abbott Plant with BJ Mallen or Gordon Miller
12:00PM COLON STREET PERFORMERS - outside American Legion featuring Jania Taylor
1:00PM COLON HISTORICAL MUSEUM OPEN TILL 4PM (more info)
2:00PM ABBOTT'S BENEFIT MATINEE "THE ABBOTT BOYS" at High School
Featuring Mark Holstein, BJ Mallen, Artie Kidwell, Gordon Miller, Mike Miller, plus the Talent Contest Winning Act!
(view seating chart)
2:30PM MAGIC SHOW at Abbott Plant with BJ Mallen or Gordon Miller
3:00PM COLON STREET PERFORMERS - outside Colon Historical Museum featuring Adam Arcana
3:00PM - 6:00PM FACE PAINTING outside 5 Star Pizza by Carol Hendrix
4:00PM COLON STREET PERFORMERS - outside Five Star Pizza featuring Trino
5:00PM MAGIC AND MORE LIVE - Sterlini's Magic Shop (more info)
5:30PM RIVER LAKE INN’S MAGIC SHOW & DINNER with Ron Carnell
8:00PM ABBOTT'S STAGE SHOW at the High School (Preshow Live Organ Music)
Featuring Nick Diffatte MC , Jay Mattioli, Martin Cox, Doc Swan, Tony Chapek, Ayala
(view seating chart)
10:00 PM DEALERS ROOM OPENS at Grade School after show
10:30 PM ABBOTT PERFORMER AWARDS at Grade School after show

Winners of Special Awards:

Jerry Conklin Award (for outstanding service to the Get Together) - Steve Chezaday

Bill Baird/Neil Foster Award (manipulation) - Denny Haney

Senator Crandall Award (comedy): Puck and Scott Alexander

Jack Gwynn Award (presentation) - Jay Mattioli

Time stamps for this podcast:

00:00:12 - Gene Anderson has finished the book of his lifetime magical achievements and is autographing copies at this convention. Gene tells us some stories from the book and some that are not. He also talks about his association with the late Doug Henning.

00:20:48 - Brenda and Marty Hahne (Dazzling Magic) talk about their experiences in Branson, MO and here at Colon over the past several years. For a thoroughly enlightening podcast with Marty from the archives (March 2014) about his "Rabbit Tales" and the international notoriety he received for his permitting problems, Click Here.

00:29:22 - George Schindler, the Dean of the Society of American Magicians (S.A.M.) tells us what it's like to be "the Dean" plus many more stories about his travels and many friendships. This could have easily been a whole podcast...and perhaps some day I will record a full podcast with this legendary figure.

00:44:34 - Past President of the S.A.M., Ice McDonald, tells us about his experience here at the Get Together and what he likes best about it. Ice is part of the talent booked this week.

00:48:50 - Unveiling ceremony for renaming of a street in White Pigeon, Michigan to "Hank Moorehouse Avenue"

01:04:34 - Hank's widow, Jackie Moorehouse, talks a bit about her 28 year marriage to Hank.

01:07:10- Jeff Bibik helps me wrap up the convention as we say "so long and farewell" to the 79th annual Get Together.

Download this podcast in an MP3 file by Clicking Here and then right click to save the file. You can also subscribe to the RSS feed by Clicking Here. You can download or listen to the podcast through Stitcher by Clicking Here or through FeedPress by Clicking Here or through Tunein.com by Clicking Here. Remember, you can download it through the iTunes store, too. See the preview page by Clicking Here

Click on the banner above for more information on Gene's book.

Brenda and Marty Hahne's online magic shop.

415: Chip Romero - A Chip Off Of Doug Henning

354: Robin Leach - Lifestyles of Magicians

310: 2016 Abbott's Get Together - Day Four

The Magic Word